Last week brought us the news that Marvel plans to move into the TV sitcom market with an adaptation of the comic book series Damage Control.
As yet it remains unclear just how closely the series will stick to its source material beyond simply utilising the basic premise, or how much (
if at all) it will burden itself to obscure Damage Control Easter Egg in Iron Man 1 (
that is, in terms of the fictional organisation’s chronology within the MCU) or indeed just exactly what style of humour the show will be aiming for (
other than it will be a single-camera sitcom, not a multi-camera sitcom) but given the relative obscurity of the source material you would imagine they would have a fairly free rein to do whatever they wanted with it.
They could therefore cast any number of comedic actors into any particular role of their own invention for the show, however with several notable comedic actors already having established characters and cameos within the MCU, there exists the chance to maybe utilise one of these to form an established anchor point for the series in the same way that Clark Gregg did for Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D or even to just provide a fun Easter Egg at the start to help establish a fan-base from.
Anyway, in no particular order, here are 5 such suggestions…
1. Chris O’Dowd (Thor: The Dark World)
Chris O’Dowd is an amazingly talented comedic actor, with performances ranging from the wild mad-cap antics of hapless IT nerd “Roy” in British comedy The I.T. Crowd, to the perhaps more subtle comedy-drama work in the US movie Bridesmaids, as well as his brief appearance as Jane Foster’s awkward rebound date “Richard” in Thor: The Dark World.
Unless Marvel have any grand-plans for his character in Thor: Ragnarok (
which seems unlikely) it would be a colossal waste of his talent not to utilise him again in some other manner. Given that very little information is ever given about Richard they would pretty much have a blank slate to work with in terms of developing the character, plus the fact that he once went on a date with Thor’s girlfriend could be a fun plot point for any romantic subplots in the show, as could the fact that Richard mentioned his cheating ex-girlfriend moved to New York, where presumably this show would be set.
2. Adam Pally (Iron Man 3)
Adam Pally has substantial sitcom experience in shows such as Happy Endings and The Mindy Project, and whilst neither show is particularly to my taste, it’s his brief appearance in Iron Man 3 as oddball TV cameraman “Gary” that earns him a spot on this list.
The fact that his character is weirdly obsessed with Tony Stark (
complete with creepy arm tattoo of Tony’s face) could again be a fun plot point to develop a character from, as well as allowing for references to the wider MCU to be made in a way that feels organic to the character rather than shoe-horned in at any expense. Additionally, the character’s prior history as a local TV camera man could either be easily explained away (
i.e. he got fired for being a weirdo, or quit his job to move closer to Tony Stark in New York) or it could even be utilised as a narrative device in some way if the show decides to adopt a mockumentary style akin to The Office or Parks and Recreation.
3. Patton Oswalt (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.)
An established stand-up comedian in his own right with some serious nerd credentials to boot, Patton Oswalt would surely be the top-choice for any Marvel sitcom regardless of prior appearances, and whilst I wouldn’t really want the creators of the show to tie themselves too heavily to the often divisive Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., it’s simply too good of an opportunity to miss.
The fact that he plays the as-yet unexplained trio of brothers/clones/robots Billy, Sam and Eric Koenig leaves them plenty of room to write around, and it could even provide a necessary story-telling route into the more wacky areas of the MCU later down the line, whilst still maintaining an essentially comedic tone for the show.
4. Kat Dennings (Thor and Thor: The Dark World)
Let me say this straight away, “2 Broke Girls” is possibly one of the worst TV shows of any genre ever created. That said, I do find Kat Denning’s portrayal of Darcy Lewis in both the Thor movies to be charmingly amusing, and for a show with a concept like Damage Control, her blend of naivety and cynicism could prove a useful counter-point for all the inevitable craziness that cleaning up mass-destruction on an Avenger’s level brings.
Also, whilst the character of Darcy is probably not suited to providing an established anchor point in the same way that Phil Coulson did for Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D, her links to characters such as Eric Selvig and even Jane Foster could be utilised for potential guest-star appearances, and Dennings herself could provide a degree of star power for the show in a market where something as horrendously unfunny as “2 Broke Girls” has inexplicably managed to reach a 5
th season.
5. Danny Pudi (Captain America: The Winter Soldier)
Prior to directing Captain America: The Winter Soldier, The Russo Brothers made their reputation directing popular sitcoms series such as Arrested Development, Happy Endings and of course Community, a reference to which is featured in their Marvel movie debut in the form of Community star Danny Pudi playing a S.H.I.E.L.D. security officer.
As a fan favourite character amongst the enthusiastic cult-following of Community, and with experience of working well in a popular ensemble comedy television show, Danny Pudi would be a welcome addition to a Marvel comedy under any circumstances – and like Patton Oswalt, the fact that he has a prior established cameo to work with in terms of building the character’s history from just makes it all the more enticing a prospect. Plus, if they can find room in the Russo Brother's busy Avengers schedules to direct the pilot (
just as they did for each of the aforementioned comedy series) it would be well worth seeing them team up with Pudi again.
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What are your thoughts? Are there any other characters from the MCU you would like to see re-visited in a show such as Damage Control?